


Behind Brown Eyes

by fickensteinn



Series: Wizard!Keanu [1]
Category: Keanu Reeves - Fandom
Genre: Druids, Eventual Happy Ending, Eventual Romance, Eventual Sex, Eventual Smut, F/M, Mages, Minor Violence, Shamans, Sorcerers, Sorceresses, Witchcraft, Witches, alternative universe, wizard!keanu
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-21
Updated: 2020-02-21
Packaged: 2021-02-28 02:01:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 19,204
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22835953
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fickensteinn/pseuds/fickensteinn
Summary: As you are walking home from work, you stumble on an unconscious cat that is badly wounded. You can’t leave it there to die, so you take it home with you, trying to save it.
Relationships: Keanu Reeves/Reader, Keanu Reeves/You
Series: Wizard!Keanu [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1641667
Comments: 6
Kudos: 28





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Sooo I got the idea from a video, where Keanu is a cat. Think of the AU as a sort of a… well, magic is real, witches, wizards, mages, druids and shamans are real, in present time of 2019. I don’t know what to call it really. 😅 Ke is gonna be feeling his Salem fantasy realness!

Your house was filled with a delicious fragrance of the stew simmering on your stove, and while it wouldn’t be ready yet, you had made yourself a cup of forest fruit tea. You sat at your couch, watching the black cat that seemed still to be more or less unconscious, laying on a towel. You were walking home from your little store, when you had noticed the black cat near the sidewalk. It had a nasty cut going over it’s right eye, left ear had a slit and it’s right front leg had a deep cut as well. Was it bumped by a car or had a fight with another cat or an animal, you didn’t know. All you knew it was still alive, and you weren’t going to leave it there.

As soon as you got home, you cleaned the cuts and carefully bandaged it’s leg, and used it’s unconsciousness to clean his fur a little bit, for the possible fleas. As you were treating it, well, him, you could’ve sworn that he moaned. Not like a cat, but a human. He didn’t seen to be malnourished, maybe a tad dried, so you hoped he would wake up soon. Then, you could try to make him drink some water with a small plastic syringe.

Time passed by, and as the night started to get dark, you lit up some candles and your reading light next to the couch and you sat down with a book. The cat hadn’t made a sound all day, it just slept. Maybe you couldn’t save it after all… The thought made you sad, and you sighed. Some witch you were. Couldn’t even save a cat. Maybe that was why you still didn’t have a animal companion. It comes with time, your friends always told you. Yeah, easy for them to say with their gorgeous owls, cats, ravens and some of them even had a wolf of a lynx! You were starting to feel like you’d end up with a frog. Or a large snail.

“Unh….” the sound that the cat made had you looking at it again, and you put your book away, moving closer to it. You leaned forward, and carefully petted it’s black, shiny fur.

“Hey, little buddy, can you hear me?” you spoke softly, and the cat groaned again. “It’s okay, you’re safe.”

You watched closely as his little face started to move, scrunching up and mouth opened and closed, his pink tongue flicking. His mouth must’ve been very dry. You already got the plastic syringe filled with water on the couch table, and you reached to take it. You carefully placed the syringe’s tip closer to his mouth, and pushed out one drop of water. He swallowed it immidietly. It encouraged you to keep giving him drops of water, and he drank every single one of them, until the syringe was completely empty.

“… t-thank you…” the cat whispered, it’s voice being deep and very raspy male voice. You stared the cat with huge eyes. You had never EVER heard a cat talk before, and you were a witch for Freya’s sake!

“Can, can you open your eyes?” you asked softly, and saw how the cat carefully tried to open them, even the dim lighting in your house seeming to be too bright. But after a moment, his eyes were half open, and your tilted your head. You had never seen a cat with such beautiful, brown eyes. Green, yellow, golden, silver, striking ice blue, even violet, but not brown. 

“Hey…” you smiled, and the cat moved his head, looking his surroundings and then looking at you.

“Wh-where am I?” he asked, and noticed his patched up leg.

“At my house. I found you close by, with cuts, bleeding and unconscious. I couldn’t leave you out there to die.” you explained. “What happened to you?”

The cat rested his head back against the couch, like it weighted too much.

“A god damn fucking fox jumped on me…” So, the cat had a potty mouth. “Please, could I…?” he tried to lift his paw to point at the syringe, but it apparently hurt, making him groan.

“Oh, of course! Do you want me to help or can you drink by yourself?” you rose from the couch and went to your open kitchen.

“I think I can drink myself… Ugh. You don’t happen to have any pain killers for animals, do you?”

You returned, with a blow of fresh water and a small pill in your hands. “Actually, I do. Will you be a good little kitty and take it nicely?” you asked, and as it rose to lean on it’s elbows, grunting, he gave you a surprisingly irritated glance.

“My name is Keanu.” he hissed, and moved closer to the bowl, lapping the water eagerly to his thirst.

“I’m sorry, Keanu. I didn’t mean to offend you.” you smiled warmly, and he gave you another glance, still drinking.

“I haven’t ever met a talking cat before.” you said, and Keanu took a break, letting out a breath.

“That’s because I’m not a cat. I’m human.” his answer made you rise one eyebrow.

“You look like cat to me.”

“It’s a curse.”

“ _Oh_?”

Keanu didn’t respond, just grunted again and continued to drink. After he had drank almost the whole bowl, you handed over the medicine, and he carefully took the pill from your palm with his coarse tongue.

“Jesus fuck.” he grimaced after swallowing the pill. Apparently it tasted bad.

“Good boy.” you smirked, and earned another glare from him. “Are you hungry? I have some leftover beef in the fridge. I was about to make a stock out of it but you can have it if you wish.” Listening to you, you could see Keanu’s face softening, and he took in a long breath.

“… yeah. That sounds really good. Thanks.” You went to your kitchen again, and prepped the food for him. Going back, you could see his tiny black nose sniffing the air from afar, making his upper fangs peak from under his lips. So cute. As you put the plate down to him, he seemed to have an energy spike that helped him to rise on a better position for eating. He was absolutely devouring the meat.

“Slow down, I don’t want you to choke.”

“I haven’t eaten in two days.” he grunted hoarsely and continued eating, maybe a bit more slowly. You grinned, and took back your book and lifted your legs on the couch. After Keanu had finished, you moved the plate from the sofa to the table so you wouldn’t kick it off.

“What’s your name?” Keanu asked.

“Y/N”.

“Thank you, Y/N. For everything.” his voice was sincere, and smiling, you nodded. “You’re welcome. You’re also welcome to stay at least until your leg is fully healed.”

“Yeah, thanks… Feels nice to be inside a house again.” Keanu tried to stretch his body, but his face winced with pain. With a sigh, he laid down and licked his front paw, starting to groom himself after dinner. You had always loved to watch cats grooming themselves, it was somehow very relaxing.

After a moment, you took a peak on how Keanu was doing, and he was curled into a little ball, and was… shaking?

“Keanu, are you cold?” you asked, and Keanu lifted his head. "Uh, I don’t know… Kinda? But I also feel very hot at the same time.“ and like on cue, he let out a sneeze. It was a silly mix of a fast cat sneeze and a human like a-choo.

"That sounds like a flu to me.” you stated, and rose from the couch to go to your medicine cabinet. Good thing you had an extra thermometer, it could be used as an animal one from this moment on. You marked it so it wouldn’t mix and walked back to the living room, grabbing an extra blanket. As soon as Keanu saw you holding a thermometer, his eyes opened wide and his ears turned back.

“Oh no! No no no no!” he pushed himself back against the couch, revealing his claws and letting out a ferocious hiss.

“Keanu, if you have a fever we need to know so I can treat you accordingly.” you sighed, and the black cat shook it’s head.

“I swear to Gods, I will claw your eyes out if you even TRY…” he growled, and you shook your head, stepping closer. Swap, and you felt a sharp pain on your hand.

“Ow, Keanu!”

“I told you. _NO_.”

You sucked the small bleeding cut on your hand and decided to let it go with a deep sigh.

“Well, let’s just assume that you have some fever then, ok?”

“Yeah. Yeah. Exactly.”

Letting out another sigh, you turned to put the thermometer back and decided to take out your heat pillow, which was filled with oats. Holding it in your arms, you turned and while slowly walking towards the couch, you murmured some words which Keanu didn’t understand. 

You sat down next to him, and gently put the heat pillow against him. It was nice and very warm. The warmth radiating from it made Keanu sigh in return, and he laid down on the couch again, so you could wrap the pillow better around him.

“How does it feel?”

“Like heaven.” Keanu’s brown eyes were squinted with content, before he closed them fully and you could hear how deep and velvety purrs started to emerge form his throat. 

It didn’t take long until the purrs had turned into soft snores, and you had to cover your mouth since watching a cat snore like a full grown man did sound a tad silly. And still, so cute.

“Good night Keanu, sweet dreams.” you whispered, and decided to hit the sack as well. You truly hoped he would feel better tomorrow. If he would even survive.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As you are walking home from work, you stumble on an unconscious cat that is badly wounded. You can’t leave it there to die, so you take it home with you, trying to save it. This is the next day.

As you woke up to the familiar jingle of your phones alarm, you let out a sigh and swiped the alarm off. Rubbing your eyes, you stretched and sighed again. Your thoughts started to wake up as well and you remembered Keanu. Wondering how his night had went, you took your black sweatpants and dressed up, as you already slept in a big, dark grey t-shirt which used to be black. **  
**

You tiptoed into your living room, and saw that the spot on the couch where Keanu had fallen asleep last night was empty. Before you thought of anything else, you heard your toilet flush. You lifted your head and walked pass your open kitchen to the hallway where the door to your bathroom was, and from the slightly open door, Keanu pad his way out of the bathroom. He lifted his brown eyes to you and he seemed to smile, as well as a cat could.

“Ah, good morning, Y/n!” he greeted you, sounding way better than last night, and dumbfounded, you pointed towards your bathroom.

“Did-, did you just use the toilet?” you asked, and Keanu rolled his eyes.

“No, there was no litter box so I took a dump in your sink. Yes I used the toilet! Sheesh.” he scoffed, and padded past you, murmuring something to himself.

“I would’ve made us coffee but, you know, cat paws and all that. Things are harder to do without thumbs.” his voice came from the living room, as you still stood in the hallway, trying to let the thought sink into your head that a CAT had just used your toilet. Well, better that than actually crapping into the sink, you thought to yourself.

“Uh, yeah, no problem. I’ll put on some coffee soon.” you answered, and heard him grunt something back to you.

The smell of fresh coffee was always something that really woke you up, especially when you grounded the beans yourself and added some dried chaga mushroom powder with them. As you started to make breakfast, Keanu bounced on the kitchen counter and padded closer. 

“Did you sleep well?” you asked, and Keanu let out a yawn before he sat down. 

“Better than in weeks, I think. I don’t feel feverish. And my leg is not that sore anymore, either.” He lifted his leg with the bandage, and with a small smile, you nodded.

“Luckily it doesn’t need stitches. We need to change the bandage before I leave to work.” hearing your words made Keanu lift his eyes to you.

“You’re going to work?” he actually seemed surprised. 

“I kinda have to, I have bills to pay.” 

“Oh…” 

You both fell silent as you were cooking your oat porridge, enough for Keanu as well if he wished to have some. Since he was able to drink coffee, even as a cat, you thought he could stomach some porridge as well.

“Can, can I come with you?” Keanu asked, and you turned your eyes on him curiously. 

“Just, I think uh, if I get fever again or my leg starts to ache, or something, I’d rather not be alone.” his reasoning had a point, but still you swallowed a smile. 

“On one condition.” you said after a moment of silence. “You can’t talk to customers.”

Your condition made Keanu scrunch his face. “Why not?”

“‘Cause I don’t have time all day to explain them all individually that yes, that is actually a talking cat, no he is not a magic trick and no, he is not for sale.”

Keanu fell silent as he listened you, his ears pointing back. You turned to face the black cat on your counter better.

“So, can you do a meow for me? As a confirmation that you accept my condition.” you arched your eyebrow and Keanu looked slightly irritated, squinting his eyes.

“Meow.” he _said_ deeply, making your head tilt to the side.

“You’re staying here then.” 

“Ok, ok, fine!” he sighed, cleared his throat with a cough and let out a precious, purring mew. It was deeper than a basic cat voice, which suited him very well. 

“There you go.” you smiled, and lifted your fingers to rub under his jaw. 

“Hey, don’t do tha- oh. Oh!” he tried to move away from your touch, but after the first scratchy rub, he seemed to realize how nice it felt. 

“Ah man, that feels nice.” he almost moaned, and you could feel how his throat started to vibrate as he started to purr. Your smile grew wider as you watched Keanu close his eyes and enjoying your touch, the sound of his purring growing ever louder. 

After breakfast, you changed clothes and since Keanu was still slightly limping, you asked him to travel on your shoulders. That’s how most witch cats usually traveled, anyway. As you were walking to your store, Keanu hummed some song with his low, velvety voice and watched as the birds flew by. He was such a cutie pie. 

Your store was a small and cozy one, selling an assortment of books about nature, wild food, simple spells, stones and crystals, different powders and liquids which you made yourself and you also made small pouches of premade herbs and such for different troubles, your bestsellers being muscle pain, headache, nightmare repellent, sleep helper and flu helper. They were basically assorted teas, and you knew they worked because you always tested them on yourself before making a new, sell-able pouch. Inside the store was dimly lit, it had a peaceful ambiance music mixed with natural sounds like birds and small streams, and the smell of herbs made it even more welcoming. Every customer seemed to smell a different smell when they entered.

Keanu hopped on the counter as you opened your work laptop and made sure your small receipt printer was up to date, and he looked around with his big eyes. 

“Nice place you got.” he complimented, as he jumped to another counter, carefully padding his way to the different crystals.

“Thanks, Keanu. Be careful not to drop anything.” he didn’t bother to answer, as he sat down and leaned in to sniff all the crystals individually. 

“Sooo… When are you going to tell me why you stroll around as a cat?” you asked, and heard Keanu sigh very deeply. 

“Let’s just say… I messed with the wrong witches.” he murmured, not looking at you. You lifted you brow curiously. 

“So you are actually cursed, then? Must be one hell of a curse, since you’re still a cat, meaning not any witch or wizard could break it for you?” you tried to fish out more info from him, as you waited your laptop to download the latest updates to the cash register program. 

“They were, and are, really powerful.” he answered, sounding a tad sad, so you decided not to poke him too much about it. 

When you fell silent, Keanu turned his head over his shoulder to look at Y/n briefly, before turning his brown eyes back to the crystals. Powerful indeed. No way in hell he was going to tell you his real reason for being cursed. How could he, anyway? Hey, I was kinda dating the daughter of a fucking Goddess and couldn’t keep my dick in my pants so I cheated on her with one of her own court maids???

Shame and regret felt like the weight of the whole world on his lean shoulders, anxiousness making his throat feel tight and he suppressed a sigh. He had been a cat for almost two years now, his hope on breaking his curse being but a small flickering flame of a candle anymore, when it once started a raging forest fire. 

He looked at the fresh bandage around his leg and took another glimpse of Y/n , who had prepared herself a cup of tea as she was getting ready to open her store. Unlike the women he had normally wooed, she wasn’t sex on high heeled legs, she wasn’t famous, rich, dangerous, exciting or powerful, she was… normal. A witch next door. Was she beautiful? Yes. Was she cute? Hell yes. Did she feel safe and warm, someone who would cause no trouble? Absolutely. Truth being, if he would see her somewhere, he… wouldn’t see her. She wasn’t noticeable. Keanu closed his eyes tightly, turning his head away, feeling anger rising within him again. Stupid, stupid, _stupid_! Stupid, arrogant, superficial, sexist douchebag. A “dream bachelor”. A former high ranking wizard. Now just … a tom cat. Feeling his eyes getting watery, he cleared his throat.

“H-hey, is there a place where I could nap? I’m feeling a little-” Keanu opened his eyes to Y/N, only to see her smiling and patting a large pillow with her hands, close to her counter in a deep, hollow inset in the wooden wall, offering some much appreciated privacy. 

“I used to have a small fern in there, but this seems a lot more nice way to use this little place.” she smiled as she placed the pillow better into the inset, it looking so comfy and inviting. Letting out a soft laugh, Keanu rose and his tail held high, padded his way to the counter and jumped to the inset, landing on the pillow. It felt velvety, soft and yet firm enough under his paws, as he let his claws dig into the fabric. 

“Thank you again, Y/N, it seems you read my thoughts.” he let out another laugh, as did Y/N.

“Sadly, I’m not a psychic. I just thought you’d need a place of your own here.” she looked at her watch and grabbed her keys, since it was five to nine and her store opened at nine am, sharp. As Keanu laid down on the comfy pillow, he couldn’t help but to smile as he watched Y/N welcoming the very first customer of the day, an older lady she seemed to know very well. 

Maybe, just maybe, the flame on his hope just got a little brighter. 

Keanu watched as Y/N chit chatted with her customers, which of many seemed to be regulars. At noon, she ordered you both some Chinese, and it had been a good while since Keanu had eaten some decent chicken kung po. He couldn’t be more thankful for the fact that Y/N let him eat human foods, unlike some of his earlier… erhm, caretakers? _You are a cat, so cat food is what you’ll have!_ Just the sheer thought of eating that shit gave Keanu the creeps. Y/N ate her lunch at her counter, while reading a book and taking a break from her lunch just to help a customer. And she did it with authentic joy. Another mark on her list of things which seemed to amaze Keanu.

When it was quarter to four, her shop door opened once more, and Y/N lifted her eyes from her book. 

“Oh hey, Linnea! Here, let me help you.” she walked to the door, holding the somewhat heavy door open for the older lady, leaning on her wooden cane and carrying a woven basket. 

“Thank you my dear, thank you. Excuse me for coming this late, but you cannot believe how busy a young lady like me can be!” the older woman chuckled with a twinkle in her golden eyes, and Keanu perked up by his pillow. He could sense that she was old, older than what her appearance gave out. To any other she looked like a harmless old granny, but Keanu felt the hair rise up on his neck. She was not just old, she was also very, very powerful. With a grunt, she lifted her basket onto the counter, and took away the plaid cloth covering whatever was in the basket, and when Y/N saw what was inside, she gasped and placed her hands over her chest in awe. 

“Oh Linnea, these are amazing! How much is there? I really can’t take these all.” Y/n sighed, and Keanu couldn’t really see what was inside, and the curiosity was too much. So with a light jump, he jumped onto the counter and padded closer to the basket. Oh wow - it was filled to the brim with freshly picked and cleaned yellow foot and chanterelle mushrooms. Their scent was forest-y and lightly said, mouthwatering. Linnea waved her wrinkly hand with disdain. 

“Nonsense my dear girl, I have my coolers full as they are, and Gods know my grandchildren don’t appreciate a good mushroom treasure like this like you do. Could there perhaps be a pie tasting next Monday?” Linnea winked her eye, making Y/N giggle.

“Absolutely, Linnea! Look, Keanu, isn’t this lovely?” Y/N petted Keanu on the head, who let out a purring, velvety meow, as he pushed his head against her hand. 

“Goodness me, Y/n! Have you finally got yourself a familiar?” Linnea had turned her eyes on Keanu, and as she and Keanu made eye contact, Keanu gulped. 

“I uh, I guess I have.” Y/n let out a small laugh, watching how Linnea moved closer to Keanu and also lifted her hand to pet him. Silently, Linnea was examining his face and eyes, and it felt like Linnea could see through his heart and soul, reading through his whole life history, squinting her golden eyes ever so slightly.

“Yes… A black cat. One of the most classic familiars of them all. But never during my long life have I seen one with such peculiar brown eyes.” Linnea spoke softly, her voice carrying a hint of mystery even Y/n could notice. At the same time, Keanu was happy about the fact that cats couldn’t form sweat on their foreheads. Or blush. Linnea watched him for a while longer, and a disturbingly knowing smile crept on her lips. 

“He’s a handsome boy, Y/n. Young and reckless, with much to learn.” Linnea looked at Y/N, before shifting her eyes back to Keanu. 

“But he also has room for growth in his heart.” lifting her silvery brow, Linnea took a better hold of her cane and started to turn to the door. 

“I’ll see you Monday, hopefully with that delicious mushroom pie of yours.” she chuckled, as Y/N stepped to help her with the door again, and with Linnea out, Y/n decided to close the shop for that Friday - five minutes early. She locked the door, turned her open -sign around and turned to look at Keanu, who was still sitting next to Linnea’s basket, looking a tad dumbfounded. 

“She was… something else.” Keanu finally said, making Y/n sneer. 

“She _is_ something else. She has looked exactly the same since I was a little kid. I don’t have any idea how old she is, no one does. Everybody just remembers her being around in the town since… forever.” You told Keanu, and walked back behind the counter, looking in the basket full of mushrooms, excited smile spreading on her lips.

“Does she do this often? Bring you mushrooms and expect a pie as a thank you, I mean.” Keanu asked, as Y/n was closing her laptop. 

“Few times during the Fall, yeah. She also brings me a lot of berries, too. She doesn’t expect me to do anything as a thank you, the mushroom pie being the only exception. No wonder tho - I make a damn good pie.” Y/n flashed a grin at Keanu, and he grinned as well. 

“Just let me grab my coat, then we can go home.” Y/n said, and Keanu nodded and watched you as you went to the back room. Linnea’s words were still in his head.

“Room for growth…” he murmured silently, and lifted his head to look at himself by the mirror that was behind her counter on the wall. 

In the mirror, he saw his bearded human face, nearly shoulder length black hair and a part of his broad shoulders. 


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As you are walking home from work, you stumble on an unconscious cat that is badly wounded. You can’t leave it there to die, so you take it home with you, trying to save it. You succeeded. Time passes by…

Couple of weeks later, the cut on Keanu’s leg was fully healed, as well as the cut over his right eye, which just left him with a pale scar on its place. Keanu was looking at himself at the mirror, eyeing the scar. You watched him with a sly smile.

“You look kinda bad ass with that scar over your eye.” you noted, making Keanu grin wolfishly. 

“Yeah. I’m a total bad ass now. All the lady cats are gonna fall for me instantly.” he said, sounding like a teenage boy who just had a new dirt bike. Keanu turned around and you both looked at his fully healed leg, which had started to grow new fur over the cut.

“So… What do you want to do now?” you asked, and Keanu sat down. 

“Seriously? I don’t know. To be honest, when that fox jumped on me, I thought I was done for. I was not prepared to wake up patched up at your place.” Keanu said, and in your mind you realized that he might not actually have any plans for the future because he thought he was going to die. 

“Well…” you started, as you walked to your couch and sat down. “I mean, if you wish to continue your adventures, I’m not stopping you.” 

Keanu padded his way to the couch and jumped on it, sitting next to you.

“Don’t you want me to stay?” he asked.

“Do _you_ want to stay with me?” you asked back. During those couple of weeks, Keanu had joined her at work during weekdays, and on weekends they met with her friends or stayed home watched films and series, made food (well, she cooked and he monitored) and just relaxed together, talking about stuff for hours. They had even made up a habit of Keanu laying down with her in her bed at nights before they went to sleep, and they usually just talked, about everything. Then he would go and sleep on his spot on the couch. 

“If I’m not a bother, I would very much like to stay.” Keanu answered, which made you smile widely.

“You are more than welcome to stay and live with me, Keanu.” your answer made his brown eyes almost seem like they sparkle with happiness, and with a joyous laugh, Keanu jumped on your lap and pushed his head against your chin, purring louder than never before. It made you giggle, and you gently wrapped your arms around his body, almost cradling him in your arms. 

“Besides, you kinda told Linnea way back then that I was your familiar.” Keanu grinned, and you chuckled. 

“That I did. Maybe, as long as you are a cat, you could be my familiar. If your curse some day decides to break, then we’ll re-evaluate the situation.” That sounded good to Keanu. 

Fall turned to winter, and soon it was Christmas. You and Keanu went to visit your family in the country, and spent the new years there as well. As winter turned into spring, you and Keanu had formed a bond which seemed unbreakable. He was literally your best friend. Which is why when sometimes Keanu got sad about the fact he was in his cat form, you got sad as well. So far you had managed to cheer him up, but eventually, the day you couldn’t would come. 

Luckily, it didn’t come during the summer. During your summer holiday you took in July, you traveled to this lovely seashore town few hours away and went to the beach every sunny day there was. Your favorite picture of the year was going to be Keanu laying on his back on the beach which way too big sunglasses on his face. 

You also attended a summer music festival, and one of the loveliest memory you had was from the night when the sky was all pink and violet from the setting sun, [Sleep Of Monsters](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DtZGKlYK9Ieo&t=Y2JjNmY1YzRlOWZiM2M2MTI3MGRkNThjODJhOGU3MDc1MzU2OTdmNixUeGtGbjh5MA%3D%3D&b=t%3AGcGyL_LbAgLmgC6_vKGyXg&p=https%3A%2F%2Ffickensteinn.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F188515902343%2Fbehind-brown-eyes-pt-3&m=1) were playing and you were dancing with Keanu. Well, you hold him in your arms and you danced, but it felt like you were dancing with him. 

But even the most beautiful of summers would turn towards autumn, and it felt like it had creeped it’s way there without you even noticing. You definitely noticed then, when you stepped to leave work and you only wore a t-shirt and a pair of jeans. 

“When did it turn to Fall again, Keke?” you asked while wrapping your arms around you and Keanu balanced himself on your shoulders. 

“Maybe you should’ve listened a certain handsome and wise black cat in the morning who suggested that you take a cardigan with you, just in case?” Keanu teased, and you snorted.

“I don’t know any handsome and wise black cats.” you teased back, and Keanu swapped you with his soft paw, to the tip of your nose, making you giggle. 

“I’m just kidding, don’t pout. You’re the most handsome and wisest kitty I know!” you praised him as you lifted your hand to rub him under his jaw, the thing he seemed to love the most. 

“Damn right I am.” he purred, but within him he felt a sting again. He would much rather be the most handsome and wisest _man_ she knew. 

Autumn meant he had almost lived a full year with Y/N, and it had been the best year of him living as a cat. At times, very rare times, he didn’t even mind being a cat. But then there were those times when he was ready to sell his soul to the darkest of powers in the Void so he could be a man again. That one certain feeling had been lingering within him for a good while, but during that one magical night at the music festival, when Y/N was dressed in a beautiful, flowy summer dress and had flowers in her hair, he knew the absolute truth in his heart. 

He was madly in love with her. 

In his dreams he was able to do all the daily things they did together as a man, helping her by reaching to the highest shelves where she couldn’t reach, tease her by tickling her sides so she would try and whack her with a wooden kitchen spoon. Then, he would grab her wrist and pull her close and kiss her, and she would kiss him back, smiling against his lips. He would push her until her back would be against the kitchen counter, then lift her to sit on it as they’d deepen their kisses. His hands would go under her shirt and feel her soft, round breasts, and she would moan his name–

“Keanu?” he heard Y/N ask, and he jumped a bit on the couch. 

“Huh, wh-what?” he had been so deep in thought that if she had spoken something to him, he had totally missed it. The smile on her face a amused, and damn adorable. 

“I asked you what do you wanna do tomorrow after work, since it’s Friday?” 

Kiss and make love to you for hours, hold you in my arms until you fall asleep and watch you as you sleep against my chest because I love you? Keanu’s thoughts made him swallow harshly and he cleared his throat. 

“If it’s fine with you, I’d like to stay home tomorrow. Maybe some pizza and wine, and stupid game shows on tv?” 

“Sounds lovely, my dear~.” Y/N answered, making her posh old English lady voice, an inside joke between them two.

“Myes, quite marvelous, darling~.” Keanu answered, sounding like a posh old gentleman on his behalf, making Y/n giggle. Got damn it, that giggle made his heart flutter so much it almost pained him. Her laughter was like a celestial wind chime that seemed to swipe away all of his worries. Hence he tried to make as many possible stupid jokes and puns as possible, just that he could hear her laugh. 

“Right, my coffee tooth is aching. What about you, boo?” Y/n asked, and Keanu nodded. She flashed him a smile and leaned to peck a small kiss on top of his head, before rising from the couch and dancing her way to her open kitchen. 

That small innocent peck made his heart skip a beat. He could feel how his throat tightened, making it harder to breathe and he blinked his eyes so they wouldn’t water. With he paw, he brushed over his eyes, and even though he tried his best, he couldn't’ suppress a silent sob. 

Y/n sat back down on the couch, and noticed that Keanu had covered his eyes with his paw, his lean shoulders shaking. She felt a sting in her heart and turned to sit so that she was facing Keanu better. The waves of sadness’s came and went like a silent, sudden rain fall, usually the reason being the fact that he was a cat. He had already spoken so much about the stuff what he wanted to do with her as soon as he’d be a man again. 

“Keanu… Come here.” you pleaded, and with a shaky sniffle, he rose and hanging his head low, not looking at you, climbed on to your lap and curled against you, silently sobbing, his little body tense for holding back. You gently wrapped your arms around him, petting his head and back of the neck soothingly, giving him another peck on top of his head. 

“You’ll be a man again, someday. We’ll find a way to break your curse, yeah? Together.” you spoke softly, nearly whispering, and Keanu pushed his head harder against you, biting his teeth so he wouldn’t cry any harder. 

He knew the way. He knew what needed to happen in order for him to turn back. Half of it was already done, and it was the half that he thought would be the hardest one to achieve. In his arrogance, he had thought he could make a woman fall for him even as a cat, the problem being him who wouldn’t fall in love. But no. He was the one in love, in a way he never knew could be even possible. 

How could someone like Y/N ever fall for a _cat?!_

After a while, Keanu felt like he was calming down. He let out a groan, and with a sniffle, he moved a way from her lap and lazily started to pad down to the bathroom. You looked after him, but as you saw his shadow, you jumped and gasped out loud. You stared at his shadow, as your hand slowly rose over your gaping mouth. 

Keanu turned to look at you, alerted after hearing you gasp. 

“What? Y/N, what’s wrong?” he asked. 

You couldn’t get a sound out of you; Keanu’s shadow that he casted on the wall was not a cat. 

It was a full grown man.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As you are walking home from work, you stumble on an unconscious cat that is badly wounded. You can’t leave it there to die, so you take it home with you, trying to save it. You succeeded. Time passes by… and truths are being revealed.

“You can see my real shadow?!” Keanu stared at her, his brown eyes blown wide and his open mouth showing his lower canines. 

“Y-yeah, I, I think I do…” you breathed, and Keanu turned his head between you and his shadow, his shadow moving accordingly. 

“Hey, Y/N, please, come here, please, come come come!” Keanu turned and his tail raised high, he ran down to your hallway, where you knew your big mirror was. You rose from the couch and followed him, finding him sitting in front of the mirror. 

“Please, come stand next to me.” he pleaded, and you did as he asked. You lifted your eyes on the mirror, but only saw a cat. 

“I just see you. I mean, as you are, right now.” you said, and Keanu frowned his brow, clearly thinking. Then, he looked up to you. 

“Could you sit down for me, please?” his voice was almost trembling with suspension, and slowly, you stepped back to lean against your wall, and you slided down until your bum hit the ground. You kept your eyes in your lap for a moment, and then lifted your eyes. Your heart skipped a beat when you saw a man staring at you in the mirror, the mirror cutting at his abdomen, which was lucky since he was naked. Slowly, your mouth opened as you stared at his, your eyes wide and you nearly remembered to breath. 

His black hair reached slightly over his shoulders, almost to his chest, it had light waves here and there, his gorgeous face had a scruffy beard and mustache, and you could notice the familiar scar crossing his right eye, and even the left earlobe peaking between his hair strands had the slit. But his eyes. They were definitely the same chocolate brown eyes you had looked into so many times. 

Your eyes quickly glanced over his naked torso, just enough to register that he was strong and masculine, his wide chest moving with his breathing and his broad shoulders had black tattoos, some sort of runes that continued down to his toned arms. You swallowed harshly, feeling yourself blushing and had to flutter your eyes off the mirror, and you looked at Keanu sitting next to you. He turned his head to look at you.

“Well?” he nearly whispered, and this time, his voice made you have chills all over your body. You lifted your eyes to the mirror again, and he was still watching you. 

“Say something, Y/N…” seeing the man in the mirror speak with Keanu’s voice made it real. It was him. It really was him. And he was drop dead gorgeous. Shaking her head a bit, she let out a laugh and looked at Keanu in the mirror, who now stared at you back through it. 

“I can see you.” your voice was husky, thanks to your throat feeling dry, and you saw how Keanu started to breath quicker. 

“You do? You see me?” Keanu asked, excitement clear in his voice. You laughed again and nodded your head, and the man in the mirror started to smile wide, also letting out small laughs, as if he couldn’t believe this was happening. 

“What, what does this mean Keanu?” you asked and he wiped his face with his hand, and from the corner of your eye you saw the cat next to you rubbing his face as well with his paw. 

“I-. I don’t know, Y/N. This has never happened before during the time I’ve been a cat.” Keanu sighed, and he looked you from the mirror. You could see how his eyes clearly went through your face with immense care, like wanting to remember every single thing about you, and the sadness on his face made your heart ache. 

You wanted to touch his hair, and you watched yourself by the mirror as you lifted your hand and slowly moved it next to you. You both hold your breath, and even though in the mirror it showed that your hand was about to touch him… it just hovered on air, over the cat sitting next to you. It was like the mirror image of him was a ghost you couldn’t touch. Keanu watched this all happen, and as his eyes started to water up, he closed them, lowering his face totally defeated. As you heard the heartbreaking, quiet sob from Keanu, you felt your own eyes watering as well. 

Slowly, you lowered your hand over Keanu’s head and stroked his fur few times. His tiny body was shaking again, and you rose from the floor, picking him up to your arms. He grabbed your shirt with his claws, like trying to desperately grab you with his hands and finally, it felt like he let his inner dam break open. He cried out loud, his face tucked against your shoulder, his body trembling with the force of his cries, and you felt your own tears running down your cheeks. 

With soft steps, you started to walk towards your bedroom. You turned off all the lights except the dim fairy lights above your bed header and carefully, still holding Keanu in your arms, you laid down on the bed and just hold him, petting his fur and letting him cry. 

“I’m so fucking tired of being a cat…” his voice was broken, and he pushed his head even more against you, trying to curl as small as possible. You kissed the top of his head, and few tears fell from your eyes again. After a while, his sobs started to die down, and before you even realized, he had fallen asleep cuddling you. He must’ve been exhausted by his crying. 

With extreme care and stealth, you moved his body so you could rise from the bed and have a quick shower and change into your night tee before returning to bed. As you slipped under your covers, Keanu shook his head so fast his ears made a flappy sound, and he squinted his eyes, which seemed sore from crying. He was about to rise, to move onto his place on the couch, when you stopped him.

“Keanu, please, stay. You don’t have to sleep on the couch anymore. I want you here.” you said softly, and Keanu blinked his eyes. Yeah, they were definitely hurting. 

“Y-you sure?” his voice was groggy, and smiling gently, you nodded. Keanu let out a sigh of bliss, and he nearly collapsed back against the bed, closing his eyes. You inhaled deeply, sighing out, trying to think anything, anything at all to make Keanu feel better tomorrow. Maybe Linnea could know something… maybe. She rubbed her eyes, also feeling tad swollen from crying as well and she turned off the fairy lights, taking a better position against her pillows. 

With hooded eyes, she watched Keanu’s out stretched front leg and his pink paw pads among the black fur. You moved your hand so you could take his paw into your hand, and even in his sleep, Keanu curled his paw so it almost felt like he wanted to hold your hand. You couldn’t help but wonder would he do that in his human form as well? If she would rise earlier than him, would his hand try to search her place for her in his sleep? Would he snore the same, or more as a human? Or maybe not at all? The thought making you smile as you watched him sleep so deeply. Listening to his steady breathing, it subtly lulled you to sleep.

As your alarm woke you up in the morning, you swiped it silent and looked next you. Keanu was still there, sleeping, and you were still holding his paw. Smiling, you carefully pulled your hand away, and immediately stretched his paw, letting his claws out, and you could only think of it as his fingers trying to find you again. The thought making you blush, you dressed your sweatpants and lamb wool slippers before making your way to the kitchen. 

Breakfast was on its way, and you decided to defy the ghastly, rainy weather and pick up your mail. When you got back in, you saw Keanu padding his way from your bedroom. 

“Morning, Keanu. How did you sleep?” you asked, and his eyes were bloodshot, something you didn’t expect to see on a cat. 

“I saw nightmares.” his voice was deep and even more groggier than last night as he padded towards the bathroom. You pouted your lips to his answer, sighing again. Yeah, nightmares was just what he needed for his sadness and anxiety. Shaking your head, still holding your mail you walked to the kitchen table and pulled yourself a chair. Bill, bill, magazine ad, new number of the food & wine magazine you had a subscription for, bill, and Magical US Daily. Feeling lazy, you swirled your fingers in a certain motion, and soon a steaming cup of coffee floated to the table, landing next to your plate of oat porridge. 

You opened the Magical US Daily, and it was lucky you hadn’t taken a sip of your coffee yet, because you would’ve spat it out. On the first spread, one of the main stories was about a wizard. It had a picture of Keanu. He looked different, more clean, more groomed, more smug, but it was absolutely him.

**_Keanu of Algiz - still missing_ **

_Keanu of Algiz, a former Knight of the Four Winds, is still missing as we near the three year anniversary of his disappearance. He was last seen with Hnoss, daughter of Freya at their annual spring garden celebration but he was never seen leaving the garden or the palace. Eyewitnesses said that he was having a fling with Hnoss and they were there to have her mother’s blessing for their relationshi–_

You couldn’t read more and you just now realized that you had hold your breath the entire time. You gasped for air, and you felt like you had been punched in the gut. Hnoss, Freya?! Was Keanu socializing with actual Goddesses and was a freaking Knight of the Four Winds?! It was only the most highest ranking alliance of wizards, druids and shamans from all around the world protecting the people and nature of Earth alike. You didn’t even noticed that you were panting, and when Keanu jumped on to the table, it made you jump. 

“Y/N, what’s the matter, I–” Keanu stopped as he laid his eyes on the paper. You stood up and had to take couple of step back from the table and you stared at Keanu, as he slowly moved to look at the article better. It all made more sense now. Keanu of Algiz. The playboy wizard who only dated the most beautiful witches and sorceresses on Earth, and apparently, Goddesses as well. You felt a knot form in your throat, and you couldn’t believe that after living with you for so long, you had to learn about his past from a fucking news paper! 

Keanu felt panic forming within his body as he quickly read the beginning of the article and he lifted his eyes on you, he could feel how hurt you were and it made him hate himself even more.

“Y/N, let me explain!” he started hastily, and you pushed your fingers into your hair, scoffing at him. 

“What’s there to explain? I _finally_ know who you are! Too bad I had to learn it from a fucking news paper and not from you! I asked you a hundred times, Keanu, I asked you to tell me about how all of this happened. But no, you always changed the subject. I think I finally understand why.” you hissed at him, and he shook his head. 

“No, Y/N, please, listen to me–” 

“I didn’t deserve to know, right? I’m not beautiful, or powerful or, or a fucking Goddess enough for you to be trusted with such personal information.” you shook your head and walked fast past him, towards your bedroom. 

“I didn’t want to scare you away!” Keanu shouted behind you, and you spun around to face him, laughing mockingly.

“Scare me?! Why? Why the hell would the most wanted magic world playboy like _you_ be afraid of scaring someone like _me_ away?”

“BECAUSE I FUCKING LOVE YOU!” Keanu roared, and you froze on your place. 

Panting, you stared at Keanu, who stared you back, and the realization of his words seemed to sink into his head, as his ferocious expression melted away from his face as his eyes started to water again.

“W-what…?” you nearly whispered, and Keanu bit his teeth. 

“Because I love you, Y/N. I have never in my miserable life been as deeply in love as I am with you.” 

You looked at Keanu in silence, and let out a small laugh that sounded like you weren’t quite sure if you believed him. Keanu swallowed and wiped his eyes with his paw. 

“Why do you think I’ve been so miserable about the fact that I am a cat? Because I can’t touch you. Because I can’t kiss you, wrap my arms around you and hold you near me.” His voice started breaking, and you took a step closer to him. Keanu lowered his head and looked down on the picture of him on the paper. He growled and used his claws to shred his own face, clearly disgusted of himself.

“Because I can’t show you the god damn love and affection that you deserve! And you, Y/N, you deserve the fucking world. Fuck Hnoss, fuck Freya, fuck all the Gods and Goddesses in the fucking world!” Keanu ranted, and you slowly continued to take steps closer to him, your heart pounding in your chest like never before. Keanu lifted his eyes from the paper to you, and like always, even if his eyes were watering, he actually didn’t shed tears. 

“You are the only Goddess walking on Earth to me, fuck the rest. Just fuck ‘em! They are _nothing_ compared to you.” his voice broke even more the closer you got, and his breathing was almost frantic. 

“And I can’t even fucking cry with tears because cats can’t cry!” he broke down, hanging his head in defeat. 

You stood next to him as he sobbed, and your heart was still racing. You believed him. This tiny form of a cat contained a broken man, who had just spilled his heart to you, being totally raw in front of you. And as confused you were, the worst part was that you didn’t know how you felt about him. Was there affection? Absolutely. Was there friendship? Yes, the deepest of your life. And love…? 

“Keanu.” you started, and he lifted his head, sniffling, looking up to your face.

“I will stay home today. And you will tell me everything.” you spoke, and Keanu nodded his head. 

“Anything, Y/N. Absolutely anything.” 

Keanu had told you bits and pieces about his childhood, but now he told you everything. How he was born into a loving family and they lived in a warm, close-knitted community in a small town just like the one you were living, in northern Canada. It became clear that he was extremely skillful even as a young boy when it came to magic, and he studied it with great success his whole early life. In his twenties, he was chosen to become an apprentice to the Knights of the Four Winds, and he was the fastest wizard to ever climb to the highest rank of a Knight, becoming a official guardian of the people and nature, also known as the Algiz Knight. 

With great power, as they say, come great responsibility. And fame. Young and reckless as he was, he let fame and fortune blind him. And even as the order of the Algiz Knights tried to get him to settle down, he didn’t listen. The high life, fame, fortune and beautiful women blinded his mind from anything else. So after a few scandals even Y/N remembered hearing about, he was excluded from the Knights of the Four Winds. Back then, he didn’t realize the amount of shame it brought to his family. But even that didn’t stop him, and he became the playboy the world now knew him. 

You listened to him, as he finally told you what events happened that made him be cursed to be a cat. He was, indeed, dating Hnoss, but being a wanted bachelor, he had troubles being faithful. Big troubles.

“Hnoss and Freya caught me and the court maid red handed. They turned her into a frog. I heard rumors that they caught her and she still lives inside their garden with the other frogs.” Keanu shook his head and sighed. 

“And me, since I was acting like such a tom cat…“ He looked down on himself and lifted his eyes on you. “It’s been three years. And in these three years I’ve learned to loathe my former self. I’ve been so stupid, so selfish, so fucking blind… Fuck…” he sighed again. “Maybe I deserve to stay as a cat.” he murmured. 

Both of you were sitting on the couch, and you had listened to him closely, and while listening to him, you understood the punishment behind the curse Freya had cast upon him. Not being able to enjoy his life the same way and being treated like an animal must’ve been the biggest humiliation possible. 

“Do you know what needs to be done in order to break your curse?” you asked, and Keanu lifted his eyes on you again. 

“Somewhat, yes. They thought I could never meet with their terms, and before I met you, I almost started to believe they were right.” he flicked his ear, the one with the slit. 

“I have to fall in love. Truly, to fall in real love. And, well…” he let out a soft laugh, looking slightly away from you, and you figured that he was blushing, even though it didn’t show. 

“And the other terms?” 

“I have to learn to be unselfish, and… that’s it. I don’t know if there is anything else.” Keanu turned his eyes on you again, and you leaned your head on your hand. You looked at him, thinking of his rather explosive confession. Now that you knew more about him, you could easily tell that he wasn’t the same man he was three years ago. During the whole time he has been living with you, he has been happy, genuinely content and has almost never complained about anything. 

“When you turn back to a man… will you want to back to all that glitz and glamour?” you asked, and Keanu made a disgusted face.

“The sheer thought of it makes me sick. I know more than ever what I want from my life, if I ever get it back.” 

“And what is it?” 

Keanu looked into your eyes, and rose to his feet, padding his way right in front of you, before sitting back down. 

“I want to become a Algiz Knight again. I want redeem my family’s honor. I want to do what I was trained to do - to guard and protect people and nature.” For the first time in ages, you heard pride in his voice, and you could swear he ruffled the fur on his chest a bit. 

“And…” he swallowed. “… in a perfect world, I would share my life with you.” his tone was that soft, dulcet tone you had heard before. He used it when you two spoke about the things and adventures you would have together when he’d be a man again. A warm smile crept on to your lips and you didn’t notice it, but your cheeks had a flush of pink on them. Keanu watched your face, his eyes sparkling, and he let out a sigh of pure adoration. 

“You look so beautiful when you smile like that. Yes, just like that.” he purred, and his words made you smile wider, and now you felt yourself blushing. 

“Oh, even better. I can see your dimples. They are so adorable, I’ve wanted to kiss them every time I see them.” Keanu continued, and you watched as he moved closer. Lifting himself on his back legs, he gently lifted his front paws against your cheeks, his pads feeling warm against your skin. He brought his face closer, and soon you felt his raspy cat tongue giving a quick lick on the tip of your nose. It made you giggle, and with a deep chuckle, Keanu sat back down. 

“I guess that’s the closest thing to kiss I can give you right now.” 

“That was super adorable.” you giggled, and it felt good to see Keanu smiling as well. 

“So…” he swallowed. “… you don’t hate me?” he asked, and you shook your head. 

“No, I don’t hate you. Just promise me not to ever hold things like this from me again, okay? We’ve been so honest with each other, and I want it to stay that way.” as you spoke, you took his paw inside your hand again, and Keanu nodded his head. 

“Absolutely, Y/N. Cross my heart.” he vowed. 

Later that night, they had pulled through their evening plans of pizza and wine, and Y/N was already fast asleep in her bed. They had chatted in bed like every night before, and Keanu had watched her as she fell asleep. There was a thought in the back of his head he just had to try. Freya had told him that trying to use magic in this body could kill him, but she never said anything about praying. 

Stealthy, Keanu hopped down from the bed and padded his way to her bedroom window, which had a wide windowsill Y/N had few pillows and a thick blanket and when it was sunny, she liked to read there. Tonight, it was full moon, and it was shining right to that spot. Keanu jumped on the windowsill and sat down as he lifted his eyes on the beautiful full moon shining so bright on the starry night sky. He inhaled deep, and lifted his left paw to touch the cold window glass before bowing his head down and closing his eyes.

“Queen of the night sky, hear my prayer. Hear my plea for love.” Keanu whispered, and he started to pray to the moon, he prayed that even for a moment, he could be the man he so much wanted to be, just so he could hold you, love you, cherish you, even for a moment. He quietly chanted the praising rimes and pleas he remembered, again, and again, and again. 

Keanu coughed, since his throat started to feel dry. And nothing was happening. As he had suspected. But he wanted to try, one more time.

“Queen of the night sky, hear my prayer. Hear my plea for love.” his voice was as dry as his throat, but still, he continued. He would continue until he would lose his voice. 

“Queen of the night sky, hear my pra-” thud. He felt how one of his knees hit against the floor right before the windowsill, and he opened his eyes - just to see his human hand pressed against the window. He looked down on himself, and saw his naked body. His human body. Gasping for air, he brought his hands to touch his chest, his face, his hair, his hands… he was actually a human again! But for how long?

Carefully, Keanu rose up from the floor, stretching his back to his full length, and turned to look at Y/N, still sleeping on the bed. 

And then she opened her eyes.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The romantic smut -part. ;3

Slowly, your pushed yourself to sit as you stared at the naked man by your bedroom window, half turned to look at you. You felt like your head was still lightly buzzing from the wine earlier, and you couldn’t decide were you dreaming or not.

“Am… Am I dreaming?” you spoke softly, and Keanu, in his human form, his bare skin shining in the moonlight, shook his head slowly.

“I hope not.” his voice was low and husky. As if he moved in slow motion, he fully turned around and your breathing turned superficial when your eyes went through his body; all of his body. Lifting your eyes back to him, Keanu took a step closer to your bed. 

“Can I come closer?” he whispered, like he was scared of breaking the fragile moment. You nodded your head, and hot shivers ran up and down your skin, all over your body with no intention to stop. With your permission, Keanu walked to the bed and slipped under the covers, hiding his bare manhood and long legs under them, sitting next to you. 

You stared at his eyes, his face, and he was so close, so real, so… so fucking desirable. With a gulp, you inched closer and lifted your hand, bringing it closer to his face. Again, both of you hold their breath, and Y/N didn’t notice her shaking lightly, until she touched Keanu’s cheek. Instantly, Keanu let out a sigh, leaning his face against your hand and he had closed his eyes. Your thumb brushed against his beard, his skin radiating heat… he was there. He was really there. 

Keanu’s heart pounded so hard it felt it would soon break through his chest, but he wouldn’t mind. He would catch it and offer it to Y/N. Feeling her touch had already lifted him past heavens he didn’t knew existed. Carefully, Keanu lifted his own hand over hers, gently wrapping his fingers so her hand was in his, and without thinking, he gave a light peck to the inside of her wrist. That small touch from his lips sent lightnings all around her body and she licked her lips, her eyes roaming Keanu’s face, eyes, lips, everything. How his raven black hair framed it all, how silky it looked, descending over his broad shoulders to his chest. 

Keanu opened his eyes and looked deep into your eyes, and his eyes were actually shining when he looked at you. You were now positive that the drunk feeling in you was not the wine anymore, it was him. He leaned in closer, still holding your hand and like from a wordless agreement, your fingers moved to intertwine with one another. 

“Y/N…” you could feel his hot breath brush on your lips.

“May I kiss you?” 

Like you had forgotten how to speak, you looked at him with hooded eyes before closing them and as an answer, you leaned forward until your lips pressed against his. You felt a rush of energy flash through you like it was an actual wave of heat, your heart skipping a beat so bad it hurt and you could swear you felt your hair fly around thanks to that energy spike like it was caught in a gust of wind. And you were not alone - Keanu felt the exact same thing, making him moan against your lips and wrapping his free arm around you, pulling you flush against him. 

He let go of your hand and you wrapped your arms around his neck, your fingers pushing into his silky hair, your kisses getting more passionate by the second. Your core was aching to be touched, to be filled, literally aching, making you rub your thighs together as Keanu wrapped his hand to the back of your neck, his hand tugging your hair slightly. Hot shivers continued to run through your body as you felt Keanu’s neediness in his kisses, like he couldn’t kiss you enough. Feeling the tip of his tongue touching your bottom lip, you let your own to come and greet his, now you both moaning into each other. 

Keanu moved to sit better so he could pull you into his lap, and when you felt his hard manhood pressing against your soaked panties, you had to break off from the kisses for much needed air. Your head was spinning, and Keanu leaned his forehead against yours, you opened your eyes, looking into his glowing eyes through your lashes. 

“I could die happy if I can just hold you in my arms… We don’t have to do anything else.” Keanu breathed, his strong arms still holding you against him and while his courtesy was admirable, you didn’t agree with him. 

“Keanu…” you purred while taking his hand, sliding it between your bodies, pushing it right under the waistband of your panties, and you felt how Keanu couldn’t fight you, not one bit. 

“We need to do that, and everything else.” You pushed his hand lower, making his fingers dip into your dripping wetness, and you inhaled sharply as Keanu gasped and moaned as if he was in pain, letting his head drop leaning against your clothed shoulder. You pulled your own hand back to his shoulder and when he started to move his fingers, letting them feel and explore you, you let out a shaky whimper. 

“Oh Gods…” Keanu sighed, moving his mouth to kiss and tease your neck, you leaning your head to the side, giving him more space and skin. Feeling him slowly dip his index finger in to you, you whined and your hips moved against his hand, making Keanu nip you neck with his teeth. 

“Y/N, my Goddess…” he whispered with his husky voice, and you felt how his middle finger joined in the fun, his thumb finding your clit and circling it with just perfect amount of pressure to make you go insane with need. You grabbed your large tee and pulled it off of you, throwing it somewhere, as long as it was out of the way. Seeing your naked chest, Keanu growled and leaned down to suck your nipple into his hot mouth, making you gasp and push your body even more against him, your hips rolling against his hand. 

“Please… I want you… Keanu, I need you…” you panted, your words making Keanu moan against your breasts. 

“Say that again…” he murmured, now sucking your other nipple between his lips. You pushed your fingers into his hair and tugged him, making him growl again. 

“I want you… I need you… Please, Keanu, please!” you almost grinded yourself against his hand, his fingers curling to brush against your sensitive area every time he moved them in and out of your sopping wet cunt. 

“I need you to come for me first, sweetheart…” Keanu breathed into your ear, his fingers moved faster, making you push your eyes tightly shut, every single movement bringing you closer and closer and you grabbed onto Keanu like your life depended on it.

“Oh– my–!” You gasped sharply when you came, your flesh clenching tightly around Keanu’s fingers, and he watched your face in awe, like watching you come was the most beautiful and magical thing in the world, which it was for him and it almost brought tears into his eyes. 

Gently, he pulled his fingers out of you when he felt you were coming down from your high, and with his help, you got rid of your panties. You pulled him down enough so you could kiss him, your kisses being nearly desperate. Keanu sat on his legs as he pulled you on his lap, you wrapping your legs around him. He reluctantly pulled away from the kisses, just so he could watch deep into your eyes as he moved himself in line with you and slowly, you slided down on him. 

Keanu’s arms around you hold you securely in place, his fingertips digging into your skin, both of you panting as you both were still, him letting you get used to his size. He burned you, stretching you so well and you were already seeing stars inside your eyes. 

“You feel like high heaven, no, you are my high heaven…” Keanu whispered, before kissing you deep and lovingly. You felt like your whole body and soul were emitting a light so bright that the sun would envy you when Keanu started to move, his length gliding so effortlessly into you, as his arms helped you move in his lap, with his peaceful pace. Breaking the kiss, you moaned from pleasure you didn’t knew existed, and Keanu leaned his head against your shoulder again, his beard tickling the skin of your neck. If Keanu could decide, this would never end. 

Little by little, the gentle sway of your bodies started to build more speed and depth, Keanu pushing himself deeper into you than anyone else. Your moans and pleas for more were like a choir of angels in Keanu’s ears, and he held you tight, giving his thrusts more power, rocking you in his lap with expertise. He lifted his head, so he could look into your eyes again, both of you slipping out sounds of pure extacy. As Keanu shut his eyes and leaned his head back, exposing his long neck to you, you leaned to kiss his skin, tasting it, tasting him. He let out a whimper, and he could feel how tears ran down his face. This time, the tears were simply from loving you. 

“Keanu…” you pleaded, and he lifted his head. You saw his tears, but the smile that grew on his face and the never fading glow in his eyes told him that there was nothing wrong. Not this time, not now. You brought your hand to wipe his tears away, smiling as swell, as he kept rocking you in his arms for a good while longer. 

About an hour and a shared shower later, you were laying in bed with Keanu, in his arms, your head resting against his shoulder. His hand that was wrapped around your shoulders caressed your arm that rested on his wide chest, while his other hand cupped your face and his thumb brushed your skin and lips. You had been looking into each others eyes for… you didn’t even know how long, and quite frankly, you didn’t even care. 

You had been in love before, but it paled in comparison to what you were feeling now. You knew this man, he had been living with you for a year, sharing your joys and sorrows, the good and the bad, sickness and health. Only in a different form than usual. And now that you knew almost everything there was to know about him, it was clear to you - you were in love with him as well. Knowing yourself, you had been in love with him for a while already. 

“How did this happen?” you asked, your voice soft and warm. The smile on Keanu’s face made you melt. 

“I prayed to the Moon Queen, Gods know for how long, to just have a moment with you. I nearly lost my voice, but… it was all worth it, tenfold.” his answer made you giggle lightly.

“She has always had a soft spot for love and romance. I need to thank her with a huge offering.” you smiled, and Keanu kissed your forehead, before kissing your lips again. After a few kisses, you looked down and tried to suppress a yawn, making Keanu chuckle.

“I’m sorry, this isn’t about you.” you laughed, and Keanu kissed you once more.

“I know, my darling. Sleep. I will be here… in some form or another.” he swallowed, and as a familiar sadness tried to creep into his eyes, you pushed yourself up to kiss him deeply.

“You cried of happiness tonight, seeing that made my heart sing. Don’t let it turn into sorrow, not just yet. For me?” you murmured against his lips, and he nodded his head.

“For you, anything and everything.” he whispered, before kissing you with deep affection.

“Sleep.” he repeated, and with a cute snicker, you shifted yourself better against his masculine body, feeling him pulling you even closer as well. With a long, content sigh, you closed your eyes and felt yourself drifting into sleep. 

Keanu watched as you slept, his hands caressing your skin and your hair. He didn’t want to fall asleep. If he wouldn’t, maybe he wouldn’t turn back into a cat? He knew that wouldn’t work, but he wanted to torture himself with the thought of not waking up as a cat again. 

With a deep sigh, Keanu carefully adjusted himself better, making sure not to wake you up. Pressing a kiss on top of her head, he closed his eyes and pushed his face into her hair. 

“I love you, Y/N…” 

As the morning light woke Keanu up next morning, he found himself laying next to Y/N, except she was now a lot bigger than him. Keanu inhaled deeply and looked down, just to see the familiarity of his black, furry paws. With a sigh, he lifted his eyes on Y/N, and just watched her as she slept peacefully. 

Remembering last night, a smile crept on his face, and he snuggled back against her. If the universe would choose so, he could die happily now.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> NOTICE! This chapter contains some violence and possibly anxiety inducing scenarios.

As you started to wake up, you stretched your body under covers and sighed. Blinking your eyes, you half opened them, only to see Keanu, in his cat form, laying next to you, his head on a pillow. His eyes were also half open and he looked at you all content, even purring deep and softly. 

“Morning, sweetheart.” he purred, and hearing his voice made you blush instantly, and you shuffled more into your covers, trying to hide your blushing. Keanu chuckled, as he could now only see your eyes behind your duvet. 

“Only you can be this cute immediately after waking up.”

“It’s my secret specialty. And, good morning.” you giggled, the duvet muffling your voice a bit, and you pulled it down from your face.

“Sooo… last night, it wasn’t a dream?” you asked, and Keanu shook his head, grinning so wide that one of his upper canines peaked under his lip. A wide smile spread on your face, and you suddenly moved your hands to grab Keanu to your embrace. He let out a surprised yelp, until he found his small face against your bare chest, pushed between your breasts to be exact.

“Oh, oooh! Oh my, this is, oh wow, OH BABY!” he moaned, overacting it and sounding absolutely ridiculous, making you laugh out loud.

“This is a verrrrry nice improvement, how didn’t I think of this earlier?” Keanu continued speaking between your breasts, making you laugh even harder and the fact that he was still purring tickled quite a bit. You felt him push his warm paws against your breasts, gently kneading them, until you felt his claws and jumped a bit.

“Hey, no claws!” you looked down and Keanu lifted his face very reluctantly away from the softness of your chest. 

“Aw come on, baby! This might be the only time I get to have boobs this big against my face!” his words made you snicker loudly, and you arched your eyebrow.

“Do you mean that my boobs are not big enough for you as a human?” you teased, and Keanu squinted his eyes.

“They’re the most perfect pair of boobs in the universe.” he purred, but suddenly, his eyes went unfocused, grew bigger in confusion and he quickly looked down on himself.

“Oh, fuck!” he groaned, sounding very grossed out and he jumped away from you with length only a cat would manage to do. 

“What’s wrong?” you rose to sit, and watched as Keanu had turned his back on you, trying to… lick some part of him… under his… tummy. 

“Keanu…?” you asked again, sounding like a mom trying to scold a lying little boy. 

“I, um. It’s, I uh… Igotaboner.” he murmured, and you blinked your eyes. Did you just hear him right?

“You got a-… Okay. Cat boner.” you nodded your head lightly, and after being silent for a moment, bursted to giggle. Hearing you giggle, Keanu turned his head to look at you, poor cat looking so uncomfortable.

“Baaabe, you don’t understand! It’s icky and stupid, it’s, it’s-it’s-it’s not even a real dick, it’s like, it’s like a fucking crayon!” he whined, causing you to burst into proper laughter. He watched you and snickered, then chuckled.

“S-stop laughing!” he laughed now as well, shaking his head. You tried to calm yourself, but it was easier said than done, especially when Keanu was laughing as well. 

“It’s so cute!” you coughed a couple of times, finally calming yourself. 

“And it’s totally fine, you silly wizard. I can imagine your reaction being different if you were in your human form.” you cooed, and Keanu glanced you again. 

“Oh, you have no idea…” the tone and depth of his voice gave you chills, and with a sigh, you started to look around for your clothes. 

“It’s Saturday and we don’t need to go anywhere, babe. You don’t need clothes.” Keanu had himself under control again and had turned around to lay on the bed, watching you with squinted eyes. 

“I’m chilly, so yes I need clothes, you horny feline.” you grinned and giggled when he made a stupid sounding “graur” -growl. 

You stood up from the bed and stretched your body again, lifting yourself on your tiptoes for some extra stretch. Placing your hands on your waist, you looked around trying to locate your big t-shirt you slept in, and after a moment found and dressed it on. You dug out your fleece pajama pants, which were black and had cute pink bats all over and put them on as well. You turned your eyes to Keanu, and let out an audible snicker.

“Um, Keanu?” you giggled. 

“Mmmmyeah?” he hummed softly. 

“You’re drooling.” Indeed, there was a clear line of drool dripping down his jaw, but he didn’t seem to care.

“How could I not drool when watching you, baby?” he answered, and you could swear that he tried to wiggle his eyebrows, making you snicker again. 

“Just don’t do it when you’re a human again.” you tied your hair to a messy low bun as you walked towards your kitchen. You heard a soft thud as Keanu jumped down from the bed and followed you.

“No promises!” 

Next week, like always, Keanu joined you for work. Linnea had brought you mushrooms again, so you had some mushroom pie with you. Linnea was also the only customer who knew that Keanu could talk. Not so surprisingly, she just asked him one time when visiting your store that why he doesn’t talk to her. So after that, there was no point in hiding it. 

Linnea placed her tea cup down and let out a pleased sigh. She had downed two pieces of your mushroom pie and had just finished her tea, you still having some in your cup and you took a peak on Keanu, who had munched his piece of the pie in record time and was now napping in his own little inset. 

“Thank you again, sweety. Your pie never seizes to amaze me.” she chuckled, and you waved your hand in a belittling way. 

“It’s so good because you bring me the best mushrooms.” you winked your eye. Linnea watched your face curiously, tilting her head a little bit. Oh schnikies. You knew that look, she could read people like open books with little to none effort. The grin on her lips resembled the ones your girlfriends could have after they hear a juicy gossip. She usually loved to speak her mind, but now, she just continued grinning, making you want to hide behind your tea mug. 

“Well, I better get going before it gets too dark.” she grunted, leaning to her cane for support when she rose up from the chair next to your counter. As always, you stepped up to help her get up. 

“Love looks good on you.” she whispered when you got closer, and you blinked your eyes a couple of times, before blushing severely and smiling in a very telling way. You stepped to open your store door to her, and Keanu lifted his head from his sleeping place. 

“Now what is this, my favorite girl leaving?” Keanu asked, and Linnea waved her hand at his direction. 

“Oh shush, you handsome devil!” she grunted, making both of you chuckle and after saying your goodbyes, you closed the door. You looked at the clock. It was almost 4.30, and no one except Linnea hadn’t visited the store for hours. Maybe it was the ghastly weather and the upcoming autumn storm that kept everyone at their homes. 

“We might as well close for the day, Ke. We’ll make it home before the storm really hits.” you thought, and Keanu jumped from his pillow to the counter, stretching his body after his nap. 

“Sounds like a plan. We still gonna stay closed tomorrow, depending on the weather?” he asked, as you started to close the place up.

“Yeah, depending on the weather.” you nodded, and when you almost were about to close your work laptop, the door to your store opened. Ah, well, since you didn’t close the door, maybe you could serve this one customer after all. 

“Hello!” you greeted the customer, lifting your eyes on them, and your genuine, polite smile dropped off from your face the instant you recognized them. 

“Well hello indeed, Y/N.” Zachary, your ex-boyfriend you dumped over three years ago, for several reasons, but mainly for being a leaching and rude as damn douchebag. He left the town after your break up and moved to the city, to learn more about magic. Or something, you didn’t remember and you quite frankly didn’t care. You just knew he acted like a fucking baby when you dumped his sorry ass, and it looked like he still hadn’t got over you. Keanu sat down on the counter, squinting his eyes into thin, dagger shooting lines as he stared Zachary. He absolutely knew who he was, since you had told him. 

“Zach, uh, hi. You visiting the town?” you asked, trying to sound as neutral as possible. He shrugged his shoulders and looked around in your store, acting like he was impressed by it, when he clearly wasn’t.

“More or less, yeah. So, this was your big dream, huh? Your big dream why you wouldn’t move to Nexus City with me.” his voice still had that belittling undertone you hated so much. 

“Zachary, if you came here only to give me a hard time, then I’m asking you to leave.” you said sternly as you watched him walk past you more into your store. You could hear Keanu make a low growl and you glanced at him, shaking your head. He still kept staring at Zach, growling only a tad more silently. 

Zachary turned around, smiling when he heard your words. 

“Wow! Y/N, you’re exactly right! I am here to give you a… hard time.” he flashed you a sleazy grin and you could feel the heartburn rising to your throat. 

“Not interested. Please leave.” you hissed and crossed your arms over your chest. When Zach walked to the counter, Keanu walked in front of you, the fur on his spine standing up and he caterwauled menacingly at Zachary, showing his teeth at him. Zach actually took a step back and let out a spiteful laugh.

“Oh wow, what a beast! You finally have yourself a fucking familiar, Y/N? A cat, huh? I always thought you were more of a slug girl.” he sneered, making Keanu hiss at his face. 

“Yeah well, I got a cat. And he’s allergic to assholes. Now LEAVE!” you raised your voice and pointed to the door with your other hand. Zachary looked at your arm, the door, your face and scoffed. 

“Fine. I’ll leave.” he said and took a step forward towards the door, suddenly grabbing your wrist with such force it made you wince. 

“And you’re coming with me!” he growled. He didn’t have time to do anything else before he shouted with pain, and Keanu had scratched three bleeding cuts over his left eye, and now, he was growling like an infuriated man, making Zach stare at him confused. 

“Let. Go. Of. Her. Hand. NOW!” Keanu yelled, and for couple of seconds, Zach just stared at him until he let out a short laugh. 

“Holy shit, it can talk! I know people who will pay a nice amount of money for a talking animal. So I guess you’re coming with us too!” Zach grabbed Keanu’s back of the neck with his free hand, only to get him wrap his exposed claws into his jacket and biting his wrist with force, caterwauling like he had lost his mind. That’s when you took your chance and clapped your other hand over Zach’s hand still holding your wrist, and your hand over his heated up with a quick spell, his skin actually sizzling from the extreme heat. 

Zachary roared with pain, letting your hand go but being able to hit you with his burned fist straight to your temple, making you lose your balance and fall behind the counter. Keanu was making a bloody mess of Zachary’s wrist, clawing and biting it non stop, until Zach threw him off of his arm, Keanu flying against a shelf, causing few potion bottles to fall and break on impact on the ground. The air was kicked out of his lungs, and Zach grabbed him again, dragging his little body towards the store door. 

Zach opened the door and threw Keanu out of the store, locking the door and pulling it tightly shut. He turned around, just in time to cast a warding spell to cover himself. You were back on your feet, having a bleeding cut on your temple and your eyes were glowing with rage, and you were casting arcane energy bolts towards Zach as fast as you could. Every hit against his ward made it shake like it was about to break and pushed Zach back, but with a beast like roar, Zach flinged his arm, making the shelves next to you fly and crash on top of you.

You could feel the glass breaking and cutting your skin, the heavier items hitting your body, and as the whole wooden skeleton of the standing shelf crashed on to you, hitting you against the floor, pain taking over your body. You vision getting blurry, from the pain and the tears, you could see Zach healing his mauled wrist, and when he was finished, he started to walk towards you. 

Outside, the rain was pouring and it was helping Keanu clear his spinning head as he coughed and breathed in, his breath wheezing. Then the reality hit him - he was outside, and you were still inside, alone with Zachary. A sound of sheer panic rose from his tightened throat and he rose up, running back to the door, panting and looking up trying to figure out a way to get it open in this form. He looked to his sides, trying to see if anyone was out there, but in this rain, the streets were absolutely empty. 

“No, no no no NO!” Keanu shouted and tried to claw the door, like it would help anything, almost hyperventilating, and he jumped to the windowsill of the stores display window, trying to see inside. And what he saw was a huge shelf crashing on top of Y/N. 

“NO!!” he roared, banging the window with his paws, his heart pounding so fast in his chest it hurt. This couldn’t be happening, not now, when he wasn’t able to use magic! Or he could, but it might kill him to do any magic with this body! And to be fair, he could rip that son of a bitch apart with his bare hands, but he didn’t have any hands! 

“Noh, please…” Keanu’s voice broke, he closed his eyes and he leaned his head against the window, feeling like he would choke. 

When he heard Y/N scream in terror, his eyes shot open, glowing all white and a blue Algiz rune appeared to shine it’s ice blue shine over his forehead. The infuriated roar that he let erupt from his body echoed in the street, and the display window exploded inside. 

Showtime, motherfucker!


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> NOTICE! This chapter contains violence and a character death and a lot of sadness, at least in the beginning.

As pain numbed her head, she cursed in her mind. You weren’t a fighter, you were a green witch for heavens sake! Yes, you knew some arcane magic for self defense, but apparently, that wasn’t enough. Not against Zachary. 

Zach bet himself down to reach her and his steely grip made her wince in pain, as he jagged her up from the floor and pushed her against the wall. Before she could think, her wrists were pushed up against the wall both sides of her head, bound to stay there by an unseen force, and Zach stepped closer, only to grab her throat with his hand. 

“Now that we’re finally alone, let’s get reacquainted…” he breathed, leaning down enough so he could lick your cheek. With all the pain, fear and panic, the disgust in your body was too much and you let out a loud scream in hopes of someone hearing you. Keanu. Keanu? Where was Keanu?!

The sudden bright light just outside of your display window lit up the whole store in a blinding light, causing you and Zachary to shut your eyes and try to look away, but it still filled your eyes with light. The sound of the window exploding hurt your ears, and you felt how some pieces of glass reached you even at the back of the store. 

As the light seemed to dim out, you carefully opened your eyes just a bit, and what you saw made you open your eyes completely. Zach lowered his hand and opened his eyes too, just to see Keanu, fully armored in the recognizable Knight of Algiz armour, his eyes shining white and the Algiz rune shining it’s noble blue hue over his forehead, the stormy wind gushing in from the broken window making his hair fly all over, making him look even more majestic than he already was.

“Keanu-!” you screamed, only to be strangled by Zach even more, as he stared at Keanu and bit his teeth in anger. Keanu stared back, and tilted his head ever so slightly.

“I thought I told you to let her go.” his voice had the most faintest of echoes when he spoke, and Zach took a quick glance back at Y/N, before he flashed an evil grin and looked back at Keanu. 

“Fine, I’ll let her go!” he growled, and with a force, he threw her towards the shelves full of items made of glass and right after letting her go, he moved faster than the human eye could see towards the door. Just when Zach thought he could escape, he felt an energy punch the air out of him and he flew backwards, hitting the same wall he just held Y/N against. 

When Zach threw Y/N against the glass item selves, it was Keanu’s time to shine. Zach undoubtedly thought he was being fast with his adept level moving spell, but it only made Keanu sneer. Keanu’s left fist lit up as he held light blue ball of energy in his hand, letting out small lightnings around his hand. He lunged in Zach’s path and punched his energy ball into Zach’s abdomen, sending him flying backwards. 

Switching his eyes to Y/N, who was still in mid flight towards the selves, Keanu flew to her and grabbed her into his arms, turning himself against the selves so that if he wouldn’t be able to brake enough, it would be his back that would take the hit. Fortunately, they stopped in time, and carefully, Keanu set Y/N down on the floor, her being unconscious. He rose up and turned his glowing eyes to Zach who was trying to get up with wobbly legs. He frowned hard and flew to him. 

The sound of explosion and all other commotion had startled people living by and some had gathered to the street, who had alerted the local peacekeepers. As couple of peacekeepers kept the people at bay, behind a safe line and created a spell dome that kept them dry from the rain, a man landed from the air in front of the store. His golden hair resembled a lions mane, his golden beard reached nearly his chest and was in two separate braids. He wore the official day wear of the Knights Of the Four Winds, his tabard having the sun and the flame sigils. His clear blue eyes observed the somewhat destroyed store front, and a peacekeeper came to stand next to him, making a small nod.

“Arch Druid Leo.” she nodded as a greeting, as he nodded back. 

“What happened here?” Leo asked.

“The people said they heard a loud yell and immediately after that an explosion. They also saw a white light shining from inside the store.” the peacekeeper told him, and he rubbed his beard. This didn’t seem like a normal robbery or vandalism. The front door of the store threw itself open, and out flew Zachary, his mouth covered and his hands behind his back, bound by a spell. Soon after him, Keanu walked out, carrying Y/N bridal style and on his face he had a painful expression. As Leo recognized him, his mouth opened from sheer astonishment. 

“Keanu, is that really you?” Leo walked to him and Keanu stopped, having trouble holding his balance. 

“Nice to see you too, Leo.” he let out a laugh, his voice sounding like his throat hurt, and with a groan, Keanu fell on his knees, still holding you in his arms. 

“Healer!” Leo shouted and came down on one knee in front of Keanu, looking at Y/N in his arms, as two healers dressed in white robes ran to them. 

“Give her to them, Keanu. Where on earth have you been, you’ve been gone for three years!” Leo was utterly confused, but the way Keanu was looking worse for wear each moment started to worry him greatly. Carefully, the two healers took Y/N from his arms, the look on Keanu’s face turning even more painful. He was suddenly out of breath, pale and his face was shimmering with sweat. Two peacekeepers run up to Leo and Keanu, and he lifted his hand to point at Zach.

“H-he assaulted Y/N and destroyed her store.” His voice was husky, and he fell forward to lean on his arms, which shook visibly. The peacekeepers looked at Leo, who nodded and they turned to run and arrest Zach. The Algiz rune over his forehead started to flicker before disappearing entirely and Leo tried to push Keanu more up, so he could see his face.

“Keanu, were you hurt?” Leo tried to ask, but didn’t get an answer. When Keanu’s eyes started to close, Leo gave him a shook and asked again, more sternly:

“I asked you a question, Knight of Algiz! Were you hurt? Keanu!” 

Funny, when your heart is pounding in your ears how well it can mute other sounds. Keanu’s vision started to shift between sharp and blurry. He knew Leo was talking to him, but he only wanted to see Y/N’s face, before everything would go black. One of the healers hold her upper body in their lap and the other one was healing the bleeding cuts on her face. With a weary smile, Keanu let out a sigh and started to fall to the ground. Leo was quickly to catch him, and he held his former companion in arms tightly, trying to call his name.

“Promise me, Leo…” Keanu’s voice was so dry it was merely a whisper and he closed his eyes. 

“… take care of her.” and with that, Keanu’s body went limp. Leo’s eyes grew bigger, and he was about to call for the healers, when Y/N suddenly gasped for air and made the healers jump, you pushing yourself to sit properly. 

“Keanu?!” you shouted, and noticed the Arch Druid holding him. He looked lifeless. Tears in your eyes, you pushed yourself up, nearly tripping instantly, and landed on your knees on the other side of him. 

“Keanu? Keanu don’t you dare, don’t you dare!” you screamed at him, tears falling, and Leo let out a long, heartbroken sigh. 

“I’m sorry–” he started, but he was interrupted when Keanu’s body started to shine that bright light again, making the crowd behind then shuffle and cover their eyes as well. The weight on Leo’s arms decreased greatly, and when the light dimmed out, he was holding a black cat. 

“W-what?!” Leo was flabbergasted, and before he could realize it, Y/N had snatched Keanu from his arms and started to run for her home as fast as she could get. Leo stood up and was about to follow her, when a walking cane appeared to stop him. He looked down upon an old lady and he blinked his eyes a couple of times, swallowing harshly.

“Your highness?” he asked, and Linnea gave him a serious, but serene look. 

“They have everything they need with each other. We must not disturb them. They, him or she, will call for you when it’s time.” Linnea spoke, and Leo nodded deeply, both of them watching after her and Keanu. 

At your house, you kicked your door open and flung it back shut with your hand as you still carried Keanu against your chest and rushed him over the couch. You laid him down and crashed to sit down on the floor next to him, totally out of breath. Tears were still spilling from your eyes as you took his paws into your hand and petted his head. He looked so lifeless, and so… at peace. But he couldn’t be absolute gone, right?! 

“Keanu…” your voice was broken and you leaned over him bringing your face close to his smaller one. 

“Please, don’t leave me… Please, don’t force me to sing you away from me…Please…” you cried, gently pressing your forehead against his. 

“I love you Keanu, I love you so much… Please don’t go…” 

In the pitch black darkness, there was no sounds. No gravity. Nothing. Just the emptiness of the void. Keanu started to see two lights. He stood there, naked, watching between both lights. One was above him, so very far away. The other one was below him, much closer, and it tried to lure him inside. It felt warm, safe, so safe… He could just close his eyes and descend into blissful nothingness. 

“Keanu of Algiz.” he heard a familiar voice behind him calling him and slowly, he turned, only to see Linnea standing there. The old woman smiled warmly to him, as her wrinkly hand moved up to her hair, releasing the hairpin she always used. With a sensual flip of her head, her silvery hair grew longer, so long it engulfed her totally. Her shape changed, and soon she brushed her hair back to reveal herself. She was taller, younger, and astonishingly beautiful dressed in a white, dimly shining down. Her golden eyes were still the same sparkling ones as she smiled and a golden crescent moon shined above her forehead.

Watching her transformation in awe, Keanu finally understood who Linnea was and with a gasp, he went down on one knee, bowing his head. He was in the presence of the Moon Queen. 

He could hear how she let out a soft chuckle. 

“Get up, you handsome devil.” she spoke with her velvety voice, which had something so motherly in it it almost made Keanu tear up, and he lifted his head to look at her. 

“Your highness, I-…” Keanu didn’t even know what to say. She knew that, and the warm, loving smile only got wider on her face. Slowly, she walked to him, and laid her hand over his head. Keanu closed his eyes and bowed his head down again. He wasn’t sure what she was doing, but Keanu was not going to question anything she would do. 

“The Everafter calls to you, doesn’t it?” she asked, and Keanu swallowed. 

“Yes. They sound so safe and beautiful, your highness.” he answered. The Moon Queen smiled again, lifting her eyes to the light over them that was farther away. 

“Do you hear anything else, Knight of Algiz? Something, perhaps, even more safer and more beautiful?” she asked, and Keanu opened his eyes. Beneath the sweet calling of the Everafter, he could hear something coming from above. She pulled her hand away, and Keanu lifted his eyes to look up to the other light. 

_“Keanu, please… I love you, I love you so much, please… Come back to me…”_

Y/N’s voice made Keanu let out a shivering sigh, and tears fell onto his cheeks. Y/N. He just couldn’t leave Y/N, not now, not ever. 

“You still have a choice, Keanu of Algiz.” the Moon Queen spoke, and Keanu lowered his eyes on hers. She had moved further from him, and she still smiled at him. 

“The way down to Everafter is easy and blissful. The way up, back to her… it will be the biggest challenge of your entire existence.” she was now looking at him, all serious.

“Is she worth it?”

Her question made something flame up inside Keanu, and he pushed his hands into fists. 

“If I go back, will I wake up as a cat or a human?” he dared to ask her, but all she did was to shrug her shoulders almost playfully. 

“I guess you have to find out.” she answered, winked her eye, and turned into hundreds upon hundreds of silvery moths that flew away into the darkness. 

Keanu breathed deep and lifted his eyes back up. Taking another deep breath, he crouched and jumped as high as he could, reaching his hand out to grab something, anything. His hand grabbed on the very fabric of the darkness surrounding him, and grunting, he took a strong grip with his other hand as well. He looked up, and it almost seemed that the light was even farther now. But Y/N’s voice echoed in his head, and biting his teeth, he pulled himself up and reached to grab the darkness again, and again, and again. 

Your tired, sore and puffy bloodshed eyes watched as Keanu but he didn’t move, not even after you begged and prayed your voice away. Feeling absolutely numb, you carefully took Keanu’s body and lifted it to your arms. Feeling like you had just lost your entire world, you dragged your feet to the bedroom, holding Keanu in your arms. You laid yourself down on the bed, and gently laid Keanu next to you, his head on the pillow. He always had his head on the pillow when he shared a bed with her. The thought brought new set of tears into her eyes, and holding his paw in her hand, she cried herself to sleep. 

The next morning, she woke up with a jump, thanks to a horrible nightmare. Her eyes felt so sore that they made her wince, and she moved her hands to rub on her face. By doing that, she realized that Keanu’s paw was not in her hand. She opened her eyes and didn’t see Keanu next to her. As she first felt a rush of panic, the realization of the situation and sadness washed over it in a big wave. He was, after all, a former high ranking wizard. Upon death, they usually just kind of turned into stardust and flew away. She was positive that that had happened during the night. Although, her fingers didn’t have the highlighting shine she knew she should have when touching a dying wizard. 

And why did her house smell like fresh coffee?

You moved off of your bed and walked to your living room and open kitchen, not seeing anyone. The door to your small balcony next to the kitchen opened, and dressed in black trousers, black t-shirt and a black, long wool cardigan, in stepped Keanu, holding a coffee mug. His eyes shined as he looked at you, and he put his mug on the kitchen counter. 

“I finally got to make you coffee. You know, with my thumbs and stuff.” he wiggled his thumbs as he chuckled, and you let out a choking laugh. 

“A-am I dreaming?” you spoke, your voice breaking and tears ran down your face.

“No, you’re not.” Keanu hurried to you, catching you in his arms and kissing you with such passion that it took the rest of your breath away. Whining against his lips, you grabbed him with everything you got and kissed him back, tears falling to your cheeks non-stop. Keanu hold you so tightly against himself that you could feel your heart racing, as well as his. 

When you heard your balcony door open again, you broke the kiss to see who it was, and inside stepped Leo, with the biggest, sunniest smile on his lips you had ever seen. 

“Oh please, don’t mind me, carry on!” He laughed, as he was also holding a coffee mug and also his long pipe. He pointed at Keanu with his pipe. 

“He called me two hours ago and asked me to come here. He told me everything while I helped him heal. And brought some clothes.” Leo explained chuckling, and you couldn’t take your hands off of Keanu, who was also still holding you against himself. You lifted your eyes to him, into his gorgeous brown eyes which were shining with warmth. 

“I thought I lost you…” you sniffled, and Keanu brushed the tears away gently with his hand. 

“I was lost, for a moment. Then I heard you calling me back. It felt like hours, but I finally got back to you.” he played with your hair, and you couldn’t help but to laugh and cry at the same time, hugging him and burying your face against his chest. Leo smiled and stepped closer, only to land his hand on Keanu’s shoulder. 

“I will inform you as soon as I know the date of your ceremony. You will also have a official note in the mail shortly after.” Leo spoke, and Keanu nodded, gratefulness in his eyes. 

“Thank you, Arch Druid.” he thanked, and after saying a soft goodbye to you as well, Leo took his jacket and left the house. 

Keanu cupped your face with his left hand and lifted your face, so that he could look into your eyes, and seeing how sore they seemed, his face melted into a sympathetic smile and he kissed your forehead. 

“What, what ceremony did Leo talk about?” you asked and rubbed your aching eyes. 

“They’re taking me back to Knights Of the Four Winds. In the ceremony, I’m getting my knighthood back, officially.” Keanu spoke softly, and you remembered how he wished to become a Knight of Algiz again, and your eyes teared up again for the pride and happiness you felt for him. Keanu hushed you gently, kissing your forehead again. 

“Will you let me ease your eyes, darling?” he asked, and sniffing, you nodded. Keanu lifted his hand over your eyes and you closed them. You heard him whispering something, and soon it felt like you had opened your eyes underwater, but without the first sting. It felt calming, and you could feel the soreness and puffiness being removed from your eyes. As soon as Keanu moved his hand, the wet feeling under your lids also vanished. You blinked your eyes, and sure enough, they felt a lot better. 

“Better?” Keanu smiled, and you jumped to wrap your arms around his shoulders and kissing him again, him wrapping his arms better around you. He kept you against him, which meant that being shorter than him your feet dangled in the air, the thought almost making you giggle. 

“Never ever leave me again, you hear me?” you whispered between the kisses, and Keanu kissed you again, his kiss feeling heated. 

“Nothing can keep me away from you, Y/N.” he almost growled, kissing you again and you whimpered feeling his hot tongue tickle your lips. Holding you against him, you wrapped your legs around his waist when he started to walk towards your bedroom. 

**_One month later, November 15th…_ **

It was like the weather was celebrating with them - the sun shined on nearly clear sky, slowly falling snowflakes making the air look like it was full of glitter. You were wearing your brand new evening gown and sitting in the front row of the grand hall of the Knights Of the Four Winds castle. Keanu had just returned into knighthood, and Leo had led the ceremony amazingly. Not so surprising, you couldn’t fight back the tears. He looked so handsome in his dark grey and blue Knight of Algiz celebratory armour. He had trimmed his beard but kept his hair longer, and every time you thought he couldn’t be any more gorgeous, he was. 

Keanu was beaming with happiness. His life was about to turn a new leaf, quite literally. He was, first of all, alive to do so. He had just been meeting with his brothers-in-arms and he was about to head back to Y/N and Leo, when someone stepped in front of him, making him stop. His eyes widened and he had to swallow the urge to jump back. Hnoss, the daughter of Freya. His ex girlfriend, so to speak. Wearing a dress as fiery as her hair, she smiled a seductive smile at him and looked him up and down. 

“Well look at you, Sir Keanu! Dare I say you look better than ever.” Hnoss cooed, and Keanu straightened his back, moving his hands behind his back like the Knights did when in presence of a higher deity. 

“Thank you, your Grace.” Keanu made a polite bow, his face remaining calm. His changed ways made Hnoss arch her eyebrow and she let out a purring laugh. 

“Oh come on, Keany…” she laid her hand on Keanu’s chest plate, drawing lazy circles on it. 

“You can drop the noble knight -act with me. Why don’t you come and have a private chat with me, hm? You know… catch up.” Hnoss might’ve been the Goddess of desire and lust, but as Keanu gladly knew, her seductive ways didn’t pull any of his strings. 

“Pardon me, your Grace, but I am needed elsewhere. Nor do I think we have anything to catch up. I bid you farewell.” another polite bow, and Keanu was already stepping away from her, when he felt her grabbing his arm with force that made his armour creak under her fingertips. 

“Back to your mortal slut, Keany?” she hissed through her teeth, her eyes burning red. “I am a Goddess! What could she possibly possess that I lack?” she growled with gritted teeth, and watching her with same calmness as before, he pulled his arm away from her grip.

“Everything. Humility, for starters.” he answered, and this time, without a bow he left her standing there. She looked after him and with an irritated snarl, she power walked to the opposite direction. 

Keanu walked behind you as you were laughing to something Leo had just told you, and when you felt Keanu’s hands on your shoulders, you got warm chills and turned around to face him better. 

“Hello, my handsome Knight. Who were you talking to?” you batted your eyelashes in a way that you knew Keanu found adorable, and chuckling he leaned down to kiss you with depth that made your toes curl inside your shoes. 

“No one special, my love. Absolutely no one.” 

**_New years eve…_ **

Champagne bottles popped open everywhere, everyone were dressed in their most fanciest and flashiest outfits, shimmer and glitter everywhere, as Fly Me To the Moon by Frank Sinatra was playing. Well, the song was playing in your house, and the party you were watching was on the TV, a live feed show from the annual great new years eve ball from Nexus City. 

You squealed and bursted to giggle, when Keanu suddenly made a dip while you danced and he chuckled as well, pulling you back up. You were both shower fresh, wearing only your comfy homewear. As a yule present, Keanu had gathered his fellow Knights and townspeople to help you rebuild and restock your store, and it was now better than new. You were now living together in your comfy little home, with the exception that you now also owned the empty apartment above you, and you were going to join the two flats come spring. Then, you would have enough room for the both of you… and maybe some future family members as well. 

But now, you were just enjoying the evening with your amazing boyfriend, dancing to one of your favourite songs ever. 

“I think I finally understand this song.” Keanu murmured into your hair and you lifted your head from his chest so you could see his eyes. 

“Oh yeah? How come?” you smiled, and Keanu dipped you again, making you squeal and giggle with surprise again, his smile wide on his face. 

“Back when I was a heartless douchebag-” he pulled you up and continued dancing. “- I always thought this song was overrated. But that’s before you came into my life. You literally saved me, Y/N. In more ways than one.” his words made you blush, and you rested your head against his chest again. 

“And you saved me. I love you, my knight.” you smiled and felt him plant a kiss in your still slightly damp hair.

“I love you, My Goddess.” he purred and you melted into a loving kiss

.

_Fill my heart with song  
Let me sing for ever more  
You are all I long for, all I worship and adore  
In other words, please be true  
In other words  
In other words  
I love you_


End file.
